The player's task is to repair the damage and restore the systems to normal states before a crew arrives at the facility to "disconnect" his mind, killing him, to be replaced with a clone.

Each robot has its own unique strengths and weaknesses, and describes the same rooms and objects in completely different terms based upon those specializations.

[3] The cover of the original release was a three-dimensional moulded plastic mask, with cut-outs that revealed eyes printed on the game's manual.

Softline praised the feelies as "continued breakthroughs in packaging and merchandising", and noted the game's replayability.

[6] Brian Moriarty of ANALOG Computing also praised the robots' characterization, stating that "a few hours with these electronic personalities will make them your friends" and comparing the experience to that of "a fine novel".

He concluded that Suspended and other Infocom products "are among the finest examples of a new and entertaining means of self-expression which can now be regarded as 'literature' without apology.

's Gazette called Suspended "an exciting, imaginative adventure game that's likely to keep you glued to your keyboard for hours."